By Claire Whitcomb, ContributorThere aren't many interior designers who rely on the principles of Feng Shui, aromatherapy, colour therapy and astrology.
But Clodagh isn't your average designer. An iconoclast who refuses to use the term "living room" ("we should live in every room"), she designs with sensual, tinted plaster walls and sculptural steel-and-stone fireplaces. Her clients include such celebrities as Robert Redford.
Her new book, "Total Design: Contemplate, Cleanse, Clarify and Create Your Personal Spaces" (Clarkson Potter), is a primer on marrying the material and the spiritual.
"A home cannot be truly beautiful unless it functions in harmony with who we are," says the designer, who goes by a single moniker. Instead of dealing with surface matters -- colour for the walls and wood or tile for the floor -- she outlines what she calls the four "C's" essential to creating homes that cater to the soul.
THE FOUR Cs FOR HOMES THAT CATER TO YOUR SOUL
1: "Contemplate your current space," Clodagh says. "How does it make you feel and how do you function in it?"
2: Then proceed to the cleansing stage. "It is harder to unload possessions than it is to acquire them," she says. But in so doing, "you can literally make room for things that you've always wanted to do, such as exercise, paint, write, sculpt, meditate or simply regroup and ground yourself."
3: Her third "C," clarify, involves assessing what kinds of rooms and objects enhance your life.
4: Her fourth, create, is easier said than done.
Adopting Clodagh's cerebral style, with zen-like fountains and door handles made from African spoons, involves something more than total design. For most of us, it's total redesign. But Clodagh's look is worth studying because it's grounded in some very good thinking.
"A feeling of spaciousness is determined far more by clarity and energy flow than by square feet," she says. She believes in paring possessions down to the emotional essentials (which, by the way, include the TV) and decorating with groupings of paintings and collections rather than scattered accessories.
To give her spare rooms character, she relies on hand carved wood and rough-hewn stone. "We can tolerate only so much smoothness in our lives," Clodagh says.
STEEPED IN FENG SHUI
Steeped in feng shui, the Chinese art of creating harmony in the environment, she believes in positioning sofas in a corner (so no one can sneak up behind) and putting mirrors in front of desks, also to keep an eye on passers-by. And, just in case persons or spirits are lurking in the corner, "ring your rooms with light like the ancient people in their camps," she says.
THE ELEMENTS OF DESIGN
What of astrology? Clodagh doesn't get into Leos and Virgos, but she does show how she roots design in the elements: earth, fire, water and air.
To bring earth inside, she uses the colour of soil, sand, ochre and amber for the walls. She adds fire, literally, with a fireplace or figuratively with a broom closet painted bright red inside. She evokes water with reflective surfaces such as mirrors or polished steel and celebrates air with ceiling fans and furniture arrangements that take advantage of outdoor views.
IDEAS FOR WHOLE-SOUL DECOR
Pay attention to shadow as well as light. Clodagh puts small spotlights beneath plants so they'll create mysterious patterns on the walls and ceiling.
Put a screen in front of your TV when it is not in use. When company comes, turn it on (without the sound) and let the flickering of its lights add colour to the room.
If you love the ornate, go all out with sumptuous textiles and rugs but hold back an ornate accessories that will clutter and clog a room's energy.
Rotate your art. "Even a masterpiece can become wallpaper if the eye becomes too accustomed to it," she says. And vary your eating spots.
By following a migratory path to dinner, you can enjoy all the rooms in your house and savour the morning light over coffee, the sunset over dessert.
(Claire Whitcomb is co-author of "Real Life at the White House" and editor-at-large for Victoria magazine.)
